Answer :
Final answer:
Correct option: b) Before the cotton gin, slave labor was limited to southern states; after the cotton gin, slave labor was also used in northern states. Before the cotton gin, slave labor was limited to southern states; after the cotton gin, slave labor was also used in northern states.
Explanation:
The correct statement that accurately compares the use of slave labor before and after the invention of the cotton gin is:
b) Before the cotton gin, slave labor was limited to southern states; after the cotton gin, slave labor was also used in northern states.
Before the cotton gin, slaves were primarily used in the southern states where tobacco and rice were the dominant crops. The invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793 revolutionized the production of cotton and made it a more profitable cash crop for the South. As cotton production increased and spread throughout the country, so did the demand for slave labor, leading to the expansion of slavery into northern states.